PEMBROKE, N.C. (AP) – Leaders of the Lumbee Indians of North Carolina are defending a new strategy for federal recognition, and plan to explain their decisions to tribe members.

The Fayetteville Observer reported three members of the tribal council wrote members defending the decision to sign a contract with Nevada-based Lewin International to represent the tribe in its bid for federal recognition.

Lewin specializes in gambling, and the contract says the firm will pursue a bill that includes that option for the Lumbees. The recognition bill now in the U.S. Senate prohibits the tribe from getting into the gambling business.

The tribal council scheduled a Lumbee-only meeting Friday evening at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke to discuss the deal.

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Information from: The Fayetteville Observer,
http://www.fayobserver.com